The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Record crowd visits upbeat
Mood was ‘vibrant’ despite doubts over future outside EU
Scottish agriculture’s big annual bonanza drew to a close last night after pulling in a record crowd of 190,000 visitors during its four-day run at Ingliston.
As the crowds poured homewards, show chairman Keith Brooke described the mood of the event as “upbeat and vibrant” despite the farming industry’s uncertainty over a future outwith Europe. He added that the show had attracted top farm machinery dealers and manufacturers at a time when they were pulling out of attending other agricultural events.
The Royal Highland and Agricultural Society for Scotland’s (RHASS) new chief executive, Alan Laidlaw added that while pulling in record numbers was satisfying, it was important to keep the show “relevant” and he was pleased to see high profile visitors who included political heavyweights such as environment secretary Michael Gove, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s rural secretary Fergus Ewing and even Catalonia’s minister of agriculture.
He said more than 7,000 schoolchildren visited to show on Thursday and Friday and “countless” others explored the Royal Highland Education Trust’s (RHET) discovery centre over the weekend.
Mr Laidlaw said that the temporary member’s pavilion, which was built at a cost of £250,000 for the four days of the show, was reckoned to be a great success as member visitor numbers were higher and they stayed longer.
He said no decision had yet been taken on whether to invest in a new permanent pavilion or to repeat the temporary structure for the society’s 16,000 members in future years.
Show manager David Jackson congratulated the Aberdeenshire initiative which showcased food and tourism in the “Aberdeenshire Village”, with northeast businesses offering a wide range of the region’s food and drink, as well as art and crafts.
The show attendance figures
“The show attracted top farm machinery dealers and manufacturers”
were: Thursday 42,934 (42,495 in 2016); Friday 48,553 (48,941); Saturday 55,725 (54,617); and Sunday 42,788 (42,757) Total 190,000 (188,810).
Meanwhile, one of Scotland’s best-known sheep farmers had her locks shorn for charity on the last afternoon of the show.
Argyllshire hill farmer, George MacPherson, took the clippers to his wife Sybil’s hair, exactly a year to the day after she clipped his impressive beard to raise almost £4,500 for Macmillan Cancer Care.
This year the couple are raising money for Cancer Research UK. Donations can be made online at http://ow.ly/xc8g30cLyeK.